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by aurumdalseni (kyo_chan)



Series: Raven Cycle Writing Fills [20]
Category: Raven Cycle - Maggie Stiefvater
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Book 2: The Dream Thieves, Hurt/Comfort, Lies, M/M, Mentorship AU
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-25
Updated: 2020-08-25
Packaged: 2021-03-06 15:48:41
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,212
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26111395
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kyo_chan/pseuds/aurumdalseni
Summary: Only the most successful of seniors at Aglionby Academy are asked to be mentors. They're matched with underclassmen who share their drive and interest in academics. It's no surprise that Declan Lynch and Adam Parrish are a perfect match. What is a surprise is how deeply they tumble into one another's shadows.“Are you going to tell me what happened?” Adam asked.Occasionally, Declan positioned himself as the master of his own misery.“Burglars,” he answered reflexively.“Bullshit.”
Relationships: Declan Lynch/Adam Parrish
Series: Raven Cycle Writing Fills [20]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1399438
Kudos: 28





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**Author's Note:**

  * For [thiswholeflight](https://archiveofourown.org/users/thiswholeflight/gifts).



> Hello! Thank you for coming to read this fic! It's part of a Mentorship AU I have with [thiswholeflight](https://archiveofourown.org/users/thiswholeflight/pseuds/thiswholeflight), where we have flung ourselves into this ship, ne'er to climb back out. Written for my follower giveaway on tumblr. Please enjoy!

“Are you going to tell me what happened?” Adam asked.

Declan felt the weariness in every part of his being. While he doctored his roadside diner coffee, pointedly not looking at Adam, he could feel the heavy gaze on him, expectant. He didn’t really have an appetite for anything on the menu, but this had been their meeting place and time for the last several Sundays, and even though Declan didn’t have an obligation to mentor Adam anymore, the habit was still fresh enough to keep. It had been bad enough to get riled by Ronan in church, and he should have known Adam wouldn’t be able to let it be either, and yet here he was. Occasionally, Declan positioned himself as the master of his own misery.

“Burglars,” he answered reflexively.

“Bullshit.”

“You sound like my brother.”

Adam let out a sound somewhere between a laugh and a scoff. “I’m not quick to call Lynch right, but I’m gonna have to agree with him on this one.”

Their waitress made her way over to them, and Declan didn’t miss the flinch when he made eye contact to place his order. He could tell she wanted to say something, but he really hoped his expression would convince her not to. He grimly celebrated his success when she proceeded to do no more than ask them cheerfully if they were ready to order. Against his better judgment, he ordered a full breakfast of waffles and eggs, hash browns and breakfast meats. Anything he didn’t eat would go right to Matthew and none would be wasted. Adam ordered as much as he could get away with on the amount he’d budgeted for this meal, and like Declan, he wouldn’t finish all of it. Declan had only offered once to pay and learned never to do it again, though he would have.

When they were finally alone again, Adam leaned forward. Declan noted that the uncanny feel about Parrish was still there, tickling at his senses with a presence he couldn’t really put his finger on. The look in his washed out blue eyes was intense. Declan braced himself.

“Look, I’m the first person to let sleepin’ dogs lie, Declan. But comin’ from someone who’s had his face beat by someone who meant it, you’re lyin’.”

“I lie all the time. Just ask my brother.”

“I don’t have to ask, he’d freely hand out that information. I’m asking you not to lie to me about this. Choose not to tell me the details, but I’ve seen you fight, and burglars didn’t do that to your face and rob you, did they?”

It surprised Declan how fervently Adam wanted an answer. An honest answer at that, from someone who’d long grown out of the act of giving one. He thought about how tightly intertwined Adam was to Ronan and Gansey, how they’d banded together for Adam when he had no home to go to. And if someone had targeted Declan, who’s to say they wouldn’t go after the people he cared about.

“Ronan and the rest of you aren’t in danger,” he offered, leaving off the ‘yet’ and how his stomach twisted in time to a countdown set before him to make sure it stayed that way. He still hadn’t figured out how to throw the hunters off his trail, but he’d known it would come eventually.

Adam sank back against the padded vinyl of the booth, crossing his arms. That answer only served to make him angrier, and Declan wondered if he knew just how potent that anger could become if he didn’t keep it under control. Now, more than ever, Adam Parrish felt composed of potentially volatile puzzle pieces, with sharp angles that could become landmines if they were pushed into places they weren’t meant to go. Declan didn’t fear for his own safety; he feared for Adam’s. He watched as the other boy slowly closed his eyes, brow furrowing in an effort to control whatever came out of his mouth next.

“People came after you,” Adam said, still with his eyes closed. It was as if he was blocking out anything and everything in this restaurant around him, pushing past the din of dishes clashing together, forks against places and dozens of voices in a static hum. “Great, we’re safe, but are you?”

The words struck something behind all the iron walls Declan put into place. He was glad Adam couldn’t see his face. He wasn’t sure how it was arranged before he could formulate a response.

“I’m here, aren’t I?”

Adam opened his eyes. “How do I make sure it stays that way?”

Startled, Declan breathed in through his nose, then let it out in an exhausted huff. He hadn’t slept more than an hour or two at a time since he’d been roughed up. He picked up his coffee cup. What would help? Nothing, he supposed. His dad had brought this on them, spinning the tale of the Greywaren until it had not only caught up to him, but to Declan and Ronan too.

“I don’t know that you can.”

“Declan…”

“You asked me not to lie, and I can’t tell you more. That’s going to have to do, Adam.” Declan took a long drink of his coffee that burned all the way down. He looked toward the window out to the parking lot as he set the cup down. “Please.”

Adam didn’t like that answer, Declan could tell. But at least some of the anger had subsided because Adam either wanted to believe him or actually did. If it were anyone else, Declan had a mental catalog of reassurances. He’d archived and organized them to fit any situation he could possibly come across, right alongside any questions about his parents or his brothers. He hadn’t come to any conclusion about how he was to find a Greywaren or how he would escape this trap. He had to protect Ronan, and he had to hide. Moving to the townhouse in Alexandria had jumped up to the top of his priority list, once he figured out how to ensure all three Lynch siblings survived the man with the infuriatingly pleasant tone and deadly skill. Declan felt too sick to eat, but he thanked the waitress when their food arrived regardless.

“Thank you,” Adam said, pushing a sausage link around his plate with a fork. “For telling me the truth.”

Declan didn’t know what to say, so he nodded, then redirected to a topic more fitting for him as Adam’s mentor. Dare he say, as his friend? Though they were encouraged to, Declan didn’t think mentors continued this role after graduation. Aglionby boys were too selfish for such generosity. But he’d allowed himself to care about Adam Parrish and it was a thing he couldn’t stop now, like a faucet with the handle stuck while he poured a part of himself out. They each paid for their own meals, both of them were carrying doggy bags. They said their goodbyes in the parking lot, where Adam dared to reach up and touch his bruised cheek, run his thumb over Declan’s split lip. Declan let him, leaned ever so slightly into the touch.

Neither of them talked about that, heading their own separate ways.

**Author's Note:**

> I can be found at my [TRC blog](http://oldkingyounggod.tumblr.com) or my [spicy TRC blog](http://athoughtfulking.tumblr.com). Feel free to come say hello or make a request, if you like. Thank you for reading!


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